Take a break from winter -- in Buffalo

By LENORE SKOMALContributing writer

February 21, 2014 12:01 AM

By LENORE SKOMALContributing writer

February 21, 2014 12:01 AM

If you go- What: Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens - When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily- Where: 2655 S. Park Ave., Buffalo, N.Y.- How much: Adults, $7; seniors (55 and older), $6; students (13 and older with ID), $6; children (3 to 12), $4; children 3 and younger, free; garden members, free.- For more information: Call (716) 827-1584 or visit www.buffalogardens.com.- Directions: Interstate 90 east toward Buffalo 80 miles to Ridge Road West exit (Exit 55), toward Lackawanna. Go 1.1 miles and make a slight right onto Ridge Road. Drive 1.8 miles to South Park Avenue and turn right. The Botanical Gardens will be on the left.

This weekend

The Botanical Gardens is hosting an orchid show Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tickets are $9 for adults, $8 for seniors (55 and older) and students (13 and older with ID), $5 for children 3 to 12. Members and children younger than 3 get in free.The show includes orchid exhibits placed throughout the gardens and educational programs for growing orchids and other indoor gardening. Orchids and supplies will be for sale.

This endless winter has taken its toll on even the stalwart and the snow happy. So much so that a little dirt is in order. And green shrubbery. And some blooming orchids. And maybe a palm tree or two.

No, you don't have to book a flight south. You just have to fill the tank and drive to Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens. You instantly feel better the minute you walk through the door and the person behind the counter calls out, "Come in from the cold and into the tropics."

Greeting you in the 67-foot tall Palm Dome is a careful collection of palm trees that dwarf you. You sniff the fragrance of banana, chocolate and lemon trees in the air. As you breathe in the moist and tropical smells that only an indoor hothouse can create, the heaviness of winter falls off like a heavy, woolen cape.

There's something intrinsically invigorating about just sharing space with plants. Whether it be strolling down the path of exotic trees and plantings from the Panama rain forest or chuckling at the dinosaur-shaped topiaries in the fern collection, or even picking your favorite from among the massive variety of ivy in what apparently is the largest public collection of the vines in the world.

Made up of 12 different houses, the Victorian conservatory opened in 1900 -- a tri-domed glass, wood and steel replica of the Crystal Palace in Kew Gardens Palm House in England.

Now a national historic site, the Gardens contain a mind-boggling collection of both the exotic and the familiar. Though the rose and peace gardens aren't open until spring, there is so much to enjoy, you'll hardly notice.

The most popular exhibit, the orchid collection, showcases a wide variety of delicate, lightly colored species, overarching each other as they almost reach out to touch passers-by.

The ancient rain forest depicts the natural state of the most primal ecosystem on this planet, complete with a cascading 30-foot waterfall surrounded by banana trees and a large pond home to aquatic life and large koi fish.

With an exotic name like epiphyte -- specifically, plants that grow non-parasitically upon another plant -- the exhibit is fascinating in its depth and culture.

Carefully placed benches and seating areas throughout the building allow for long spells of meditation or simply spacing out. Even if you don't care a hoot about plants and flowers, the effect of being among them is nothing short of curative.

Best of all, the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens is located fewer than 100 miles from Erie, and it's open every day of the week

The admission fee is reasonable, so there's no good reason not to go. Not even the weather should hold you back.

If you go- What: Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens - When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily- Where: 2655 S. Park Ave., Buffalo, N.Y.- How much: Adults, $7; seniors (55 and older), $6; students (13 and older with ID), $6; children (3 to 12), $4; children 3 and younger, free; garden members, free.- For more information: Call (716) 827-1584 or visit www.buffalogardens.com.- Directions: Interstate 90 east toward Buffalo 80 miles to Ridge Road West exit (Exit 55), toward Lackawanna. Go 1.1 miles and make a slight right onto Ridge Road. Drive 1.8 miles to South Park Avenue and turn right. The Botanical Gardens will be on the left.

This weekend

The Botanical Gardens is hosting an orchid show Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tickets are $9 for adults, $8 for seniors (55 and older) and students (13 and older with ID), $5 for children 3 to 12. Members and children younger than 3 get in free.The show includes orchid exhibits placed throughout the gardens and educational programs for growing orchids and other indoor gardening. Orchids and supplies will be for sale.